Costa Rica: Day 3

The five of us -- Andi, Tory, Aden, Janie and I -- woke up with the sun (and the roosters!) around 6:00am Thursday morning. We putzed around our rental house at Nepenthe before breakfast was served in the main building of the bed + breakfast. On this day, the cook made ham and vegetable omelets for everyone with toast, fresh pineapple and papaya.

I truly appreciate how accommodating the staff at Nepenthe has been for our family. Every morning at breakfast, the property manager sets a place at the table for Aden with a booster seat high chair and a spoon. He feels like such a big boy using grown-up plates and utensils like everyone else. I also have to say how proud I am of Tory and Aden for trying new foods on our Costa Rican adventure. Not once have they whined about a meal, or refused to eat something. Traveling is about new experiences, and even the kids have embraced that fact. 

After a satisfying breakfast, we decided to tour a working farm in El Castillo called Rancho Margot. The ranch employs local farmworkers, cooks and craftsman along with volunteers from all over the world wishing to be fully immersed in sustainable living. Livestock and gardens are kept for the purpose of feeding guests on the farm, hydroelectric turbines produce the property's energy and leftover vegetable oil is used to make soap for washing. Amazingly, the property is fully self-sufficient. Many guests come to Rancho Margot to work for a few months at a time, and others come to train to become certified yoga instructors. Andi and I discussed whether we'd be able to stay on at a place like Rancho Margot. It'd be quite the experience, and an excellent way to be fully submersed in the language and culture.

 

A tour guide met us in Rancho Margot's main lobby at the beginning of our visit, then we spent the next two hours walking to various parts of the ranch to learn about their sustainable practices. I was in awe of the sheer beauty of this place; it felt like we'd stepped inside a tranquil oasis.

Our group was invited to stay at Rancho Margot's for their lunch buffet, but we decided to eat in town at one of El Castillo's local restaurants: Soda La Mesa de Mama. This little roadside cafe isn't much to look at from the outside, but the food was very good. Andi and I ordered typical Costa Rican plates which included rice, beans, salad, fresh cheese, fried plantain and beef, fish or chicken. It's way more food than any one of us can eat, so it works out well to share plates between the five of us. Janie also ordered a beef taco and it was plated with a cabbage slaw salad topped with ketchup and mayo. That was a little strange, but the kids enjoyed eating the crunchy taco at least.

Every restaurant in El Castillo seems to offer strawberries smoothies, and they've become Tory and Aden's favorite menu item. The kids slurp down smoothies while we wait for our food to be prepared, and it's a win/win for everyone.

Rough life, eh Aden?

After lunch, we drove back to Nepenthe for nap time. The kids practically collapsed into their beds as soon as we laid them down on this particular afternoon. They're happily exhausted from our daily adventures and Andi, Janie and I enjoyed some nice quiet time, too.

When Tory and Aden woke up around 4:00pm, we decided to visit the Butterfly Conservatory in El Castillo. Tory spotted signs for this exhibit right away, and we promised her we'd make a stop there during our time in the rain forest. Unfortunately, the time of day and current weather forecast wasn't the best for watching butterflies, or so we learned upon our arrival. Butterflies are most active when it's warm and sunny outdoors and since El Castillo had been socked in with rain the last few days, the butterflies weren't doing much of anything. We promised Tory we'd come back to see the butterflies again, and headed off to find something else to do in town.

Up the street, we stumbled upon an herbs + art studio called La Gavilana and decided to check it out. One of the shop owners named Hannah and her one-year-old son warmly greeted us at the entrance. It seemed like the perfect place to nab reprieve from the rain while enjoying a cup of coffee and good conversation.

Andi and I were instantly drawn to the unique charm of this place. As an artist, Hannah paints artwork available for sale in the studio while her significant other, Thomas, is big into fermenting and making hot sauces for sale. A third business partner bakes breads and cookies to sell in the shop. La Gavilana was quirky and fun, but what I found to be most inspiring was the mother-to-mother connection Hannah and I shared. Her 17-month old son, Noah, and Tory and Aden became fast friends. All the while, Hannah and I told stories about our personal parenting struggles and triumphs. In that moment I realized how similar this gig called parenting is, no matter what area of the world you happen to be raising a family.

Next stop was for ice cream since Andi promised Tory she'd eat some every day during our vacation. We drove to a well-known restaurant in town called Pizza John's, popular for their pizza (obviously) and homemade ice cream. Ice cream flavors on this day were banana, cookie, coconut and peanut so Andi ordered three of the four flavors for us to share. 

One tradition at Pizza John's is to graffiti the walls with your own personal stamp on the place. The two-story cement building was covered in Sharpie marker messages. Following suit, I wrote our name and the year on one of the windows, then Tory scribbled her name and drew a picture of herself on the wall. You would've thought Tory and Aden won the lottery; the way their eyes lit up with the fabulously dangerous idea of drawing on the wall was too much to believe. Let's hope they don't try the same thing back home!

  
Andi made dinner reservations at another sustainable farm in El Castillo called Essence Arenal. This boutique hostel has its own organic farm where they grow ingredients used for vegetarian meals served in their restaurant. Guests are welcomed into the open-concept kitchen for dinner, and invited to assist in preparing the meal with the head cook.

Dinner sounded like a fun experience for everyone, but the meal didn't start until 7:00pm and the more we thought about it, the more we knew it'd be too late in the evening for Aden. Andi was about to cancel our reservation when Janie offered to stay back at the house with the kids so Andi and I experience Essence Arenal by ourselves. Have I mentioned how wonderful it is to travel with Grandma Janie? She makes traveling with kids a breeze.  

Andi and I were some of the first guests to arrive at Essence Arenal for dinner. As others trickled in, we noticed almost every single group were families -- most with younger children, just like ours. We felt silly not bringing Tory and Aden along with us -- they would've loved the hands-on cooking demo! -- but then we remembered how stressful dinner was the evening prior and decided to enjoy the peace and quiet ... at least at our table.

On the menu for this evening was cheesy vegetable soup and empanadas. Essence's head cook invited Andi and I up first to show us how to make typical Costa Rican empanadas using black beans, cheese and potatoes. As she fried them, we returned to our table to eat the homemade vegetable soup already prepared for us.

A Swiss couple joined Andi and I at our table for dinner, and we enjoyed a pleasant conversation about our various travels and adventures across the world. Having traveled in Costa Rica several times before, Andi gave our new friends several tips about where to visit along the Pacific coastline.

Day 3 of our Costa Rican vacation was full of new experiences. We met fellow travelers from across the world and enjoyed great conversation with the locals. El Castillo in particular feels safe and welcoming, especially to families. We're loving our time in the rain forest!

Costa Rica: Days 1 & 2

Hola from Costa Rica!

Andi, Tory, Aden and I, along with Andi's mom Janie, hopped on an airplane in Minneapolis early Tuesday morning and traveled seven hours south to Liberia, Costa Rica. From there, we rented a car and drove three more hours to a small town called El Castillo situated in the heart of the Costa Rican rainforest overlooking Lake Arenal. That's where we'll stay until Saturday, then we'll head to the beach for another four days of blissful vacation.

Ten hours of travel might seem like a nightmare with a four-year-old and two-year-old in tow, but Tory and Aden have been fabulous companions on our trip. With three adults along, it's fairly simple to tackle luggage transport and supervise the kids. Our airplane ride was smooth sailing compared to our last trips to Mexico, especially since Tory and Aden were seated comfortably in their car seats (aka: not seated on our laps).

Andi promised Tory she could have ice cream everyday in Costa Rica so the minute we landed on the tarmac she turned to Aden with a sparkle in her eye and said, "This is the place we get to eat ice cream EVERY DAY." Oh, travel through the eyes of a child ...

The first part of our drive from Liberia to Canas, Costa Rica was smooth sailing. Andi prepped Janie and I for bumpy dirt roads with limited signage based on his past experience, but we were surprised to find most of our car journey to be paved two-lane highway. In Canas, the road began to climb in elevation, and our environment quickly changed as we looped around Lake Arenal on a tight two-lane road. We drove up! up! up! (or, more like around! around! around! a curve) for two straight hours. My amazing husband drove the entire way dodging motorcycles, dogs, people on foot, and even cars parked right in the middle of the lane. Did I mention it was raining and pitch-black outside? Talk about stressful. We were all thankful for Aden's levity when he broke into song the last 20 minutes of our trip. The ABC's sung by a two-year-old never sounded so good. Hungry and exhausted, our crew finally arrived at Nepenthe Bed + Breakfast around 6:30pm that evening.

Andi grabbed take-out from the on-site restaurant called Agustino's and after we unloaded our bags from the car, we chowed down on fresh guacamole, a cucumber and tomato salad, fried rice, chicken fingers and french fries. We were all beat from a long day of travel, so we headed to bed shortly afterwards.

Our family is renting the owner's house at Nepenthe. Typically, guests stay in smaller one bedrooms with a kitchenette, but our big house features 3-bedrooms, 2-bathrooms, a full kitchen, living room, dining room, sun room and a bar area along with sweeping views of Lake Arenal.   The house is located next to the main building on property where breakfast is served every morning. We also have our own private pool and a coup full of chickens as next door neighbors. Tory and Aden love feeding the chicken scraps of food, but none of us particularly love the cock-a-doodle-do's heard from 4:00am - 6:00am!

Wednesday, the five of us woke up feeling fresh after a good night's rest. Breakfast wasn't served in the restaurant until 8:30am (and we all know kids are up waaaay before that) so Andi, Tory, Aden, Janie and I decided to take a drive around El Castillo to familiarize ourselves with the surroundings. We hadn't seen much on our drive in the evening prior since it was dark and raining.

The town of El Castillo is a small village located 35 minutes west of the more popular town, La Fortuna, in the area. There are a handful of local family restaurants in El Castillo, a small market with grocery essentials, and a few other bed + breakfast hotels. I think it's safe to say, all five of us had the same reaction: WOW! The scenery around us is absolutely breathtaking. We are nestled in the heart of the rain forest. Everything is so lush and green ... and wet!

We returned to Nepenthe (climbing the steep, bumpy dirt road by SUV) and enjoyed a hearty homemade breakfast of fresh fruit, pancakes, sausage and fried plantains. One of Tory's resolutions in 2016 is "try new things" (self-prescribed), and I was so proud of her for trying plantains and guava fruit for the first time. She didn't like the plantains, but enjoyed the guava fruit and that's a big win for our picky eater.

At breakfast, we also met the owner of the bed + breakfast and chatted with a few other guests staying at Nepenthe. Andi picked up a few activity recommendations from the property manager and we watched in amazement as the cook summoned in a parrot from the trees and fed it a breakfast of fruit and pancakes on the table. Wednesday was already shaping up to be an interesting day!

  

This particular area in Costa Rica is known for its natural geothermal hot springs. After breakfast, we decided to drive to nearby La Fortuna to check out the town and visit one of the hot springs in the area. Aden fell asleep during the 30 minute car ride, so we stopped by the grocery store first and bought some snacks and fruit to munch on back at the house. Visiting the local grocery store is one of my favorite things to do on vacation. It's so interesting to see what products are available, what's similar to back home and what's unique to the area. Tory was amazed by the pink and blue-colored marshmallows and identified a pack of Oreo's to share with Aden right away.

Next, we visited a natural hot springs near La Fortuna. There are actually two hot springs in the area: one is free of charge but has no changing area or bathroom (it's basically a natural hot springs off the side of the road); or, a second one with more modern amenities and $35/pp. We decided to check out the free hot springs first to see if it was even something we could do with the kids. We parked our car and climbed down a slope hill to discover a mix of locals and tourists soaking themselves in the rapids. Except, rapids they were. The fast-moving current seemed too dangerous for the kids, so Andi found another entrance on the other side of the road with calmer water. We had to off-road on foot a bit to get there, but once we hiked down a path and into the trees, an opening cleared with the most amazing scene and in that moment, it hit me: we were in the Costa Rican rain forest!

The water was as warm bath water and bubbly like a hot tub. The calming rapids soothingly massaged against our skin as we sat on the rocky bottom. It was unlike anything I'd ever seen or done before! Our dare-devil little boy, Aden, begged us to let him swim down the small waterfall into rougher water. Then he noticed a group of guys cruising down the rapids on an intertube. Aden's eyes lit as he shouted, "I want that!" over and over. That's when we knew our time at the hot springs had come to an end.

Wet and hungry, we hopped back in the car and drove toward our rented house at Nepenthe. On the way, we stopped for lunch at La Ventanita Cafe. Andi ordered a tico bowl, cheese quesadilla and wrap de pollo for our group to share. A local woman cooked the food to order while her children homeschooled in the back room. We ate and enjoyed the peacefulness of dining outdoors in the jungle.

Afterwards, we stopped by the town market for ice cream. A dad has to live up to his promise: ice cream everyday! As Tory and Aden sat on a bench together outside the market, a crowd of local men smiled onto them. Our two kiddos were having such a great time together as they sat under an awning, rain falling around them, eating their ice cream.

Next, we headed back to Nepenthe for a little rest time. Both kids were tired, but neither were giving into the idea of an afternoon nap. We laid low for a while and watched two episodes of Curious George on Spanish television before we eventually decided to pull on our rain jackets and go for a walk around the property.

Here's the thing about vacationing in the rain forest: it rains - A LOT. Like, it hasn't stopped raining since we got here. The air is warm and humid and everything around us is wet. Honestly though, I don't mind it. We came to the rain forest to be in the rain forest. Andi, Janie and I want to make the most of every moment we're here, so we all dress for the weather and get out there to explore!

  

Aden, in particular, is enjoying his time in the rain. He stomps in every muddy puddle he comes across, and hides under big banana leaf branches. Nevermind the fact his shoes are constantly wet since it takes so long to air-dry things here.

As we returned to the house after our walk, we ran into the property's gardener. He was carrying two pieces of fruit he'd just picked off a tree and we asked him what they were. Unable to communicate with English he said, "naranja," and handed them to us to take. "Gracias," we said and immediately took them back to the house to eat.
  

The given fruit were oranges; more firm than ones we're used to seeing at home, also more tart and more juicy ... but equally delicious. Andi cut an orange into slices and the five of us sat on our patio and ate them with sweeping views of Lake Arenal around us. Pinch me, it was perfect!

We ate dinner at Agustino's on property for a second night, this time dining on the restaurant's upstairs balcony. It'd like to pretend our meal was as wonderful as the rest of the day had been but the truth is, both kids were tired and ready for bed. Somehow Tory fell off her chair at the table and scraped the side of her leg pretty badly. She sat on Andi's lap and stifled cries the rest of the meal. Aden wanted nothing to do with sitting down at the table, so Janie and I took turns wandering around with him while the other person scarfed down their food. So is life traveling with children! We ate quickly, and headed back to the house for bedtime. Fortunately, both kids have been sleeping well since we got here.

Overall, we had a wonderful first day in Costa Rica. I'm excited to see what adventures unfold during our next three days in the rain forest!  

2015

Twenty-fifteen was a great year for our little family of four. I'm a bit sad to see it go, and also excited to see what the new year has in store for us.

Let's reflect on 2015 with an annual survey I've been doing for seven years now:
(Here's 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014)

1. What did you do in 2015 that you'd never done before?


Learn to fish and love it. Reeled in a big catch (a 36" Northern Pike)! Appeared on the cover of a Canadian fishing outfitter's brochure. Learned to drive a pontoon boat. Went to a gun range (for date night!) and learned to shoot a pistol. Had LASIK eye surgery. Made myself a priority for a change. Became a photographer. Celebrated my 34th birthday. Visited Sayulita, Mexico. Drove over the Canadian border. Cheers'd to six years of wedded bliss. Started exercising and eating healthier food. Finally lost the baby weight, and then some. Celebrated Christmas at our lake cabin. 

2. Did you keep your new year's resolutions, and will you make more for next year?


Yes! In January 2015, I set personal goals to learn photography and to make myself a priority after so many consecutive years of pregnancy and the infant years. I'm happy to say I achieved both.

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?

Yes - fellow blogger Lacey in April (Laney), my childhood best friend Ashley in May (Harper), my cousin Jen in May (Ben) and my good friend Lindsey in June (Brooke).

4. Did anyone close to you die?

Sadly, Andi lost an uncle in October.

5. What countries did you visit?


Canada and Mexico

6. What would you like to have in 2016 that you didn't have in 2015?


Twenty-fifteen was such a good year for us, I can't honestly think of one single thing. 

7. What dates from 2015 will be etched upon your memory, and why?

Andi and I celebrated 10 years together (dating anniversary) on December 9

8. What was your biggest achievement of this year?


I started eating healthier and exercising in October, and I'm proud to say I've kept to it! For someone who's never exercised a day in her life, (okay, I did go to a few cardio kickboxing classes in college and thought I was going to DIE) this is a really big achievement for me. It's pretty incredible the way my body responded to healthier treatment and I feel good knowing I'm setting a positive example for my kids.

9. What's your biggest failure?

Losing my cool with my kids, I'd say. Tory, in particular, is very tender-hearted and her feelings are hurt easily when my voice escalates from frustration.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?

Aside from a six-week sinus infection I couldn't kick last spring, I stayed relatively healthy last year.

11. What was the best thing you bought?

I purged my entire closet last spring of ill-fitting clothes from past years. Then, I signed up to receive a box from Stitch Fix every month and kept only the items that made me feel great. I may only have a handful of shirts, pants and dresses in my closet now, but I know they fit me perfectly.     

12. Whose behavior merited celebration?

I'd say Tory and Aden's --  they both started sleeping through the night on a (semi) consistent basis. Sure, they have sleep strikes here and there ... but for the most part, our family is sleeping for the first time in four years. The whole world seems brighter because of it.

13. Whose behavior made you appalled and depressed?

The masterminds behind all those mass shootings.

14. Where did most of your money go?
Bills, house mortgage, the cabin. We bought my SUV out of its lease this year. We also bought a new ATV and pontoon boat (at the tail end of the summer season, so we haven't used it yet).  

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?

Travel. I loved our Mexican vacation with the kids, trips home to see my Nebraska friends and family, solo weekend getaways with Andi, visits to see friends across the country. 

16. What song(s) will always remind you of 2015?

"Kick the Dust Up" by Luke Bryan. It was the first pop song Tory learned and seemed to be our anthem this past summer at the lake cabin. 

17. Compared to this time last year, are you: happier / sadder; fatter or skinner; richer or poorer?
Happier / Skinnier / Richer

18. What do you wish you'd done more of?

Traveling. There's always more places to explore ...

19. What do you wish you'd done less of?


Worrying about what other people think of me.

20. How did you spend Christmas?


Our family spent 10 days at the lake cabin around Christmas and New Year's, and it was wonderful.

21. Did you fall in love with 2015?

With exercise. (Does that sound corny? That's corny, isn't it?)

But, seriously - My whole life, I identified myself as someone who despised exercise; who could remain "fit" even though I fed my body garbage food. Now, I realize how vital it is to carve out personal time for myself everyday and exercise is the way I'm doing it. I make myself a priority!

22. What was your favorite TV program?

I watched five seasons of Scandal episodes in the last half of 2015. I only got to watch it when Andi was traveling for work, so it felt like my special reward at the end of a long solo parenting day.

23. Do you hate anyone now that you didn't hate this time last year?

Nope.

24. What was the best book you read?


I read a bunch of Liane Moriarty books that I loved

25. What was your greatest musical discovery?


Maple Grove Summertime Concerts in the Park. Tory, Aden and I had a blast attending the kid's concerts every Thursday morning. I'd bring a picnic lunch and they'd dance their little hearts out. 

26. What did you want and get?

More time together as a family. We spent lots of "extra" days in addition regular weekends at the lake cabin.

27. What did you want and not get?


I'd love to take a girl's trip with friends someday. I finally feel like I'm at a place in my life (after pregnancy and the very little kid years) but most of my friends are still very deep in the thrones of babies. It's a difficult season of life to travel with girlfriends, but I hope one day it'll be more feasible.

28. What was your favorite film of 2015?

I don't watch a lot of movies, but Andi and I saw The Longest Ride and it was a good love story.

29. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?

I turned 34 on February 13, and we celebrated with some of our lake friends at the cabin. We ate dinner at The County Line, then everyone came over to our place for cake and cocktails. It was perfect.

30. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?

I miss my friends who live in other states. Life is so busy for all of us that sometimes it's hard to find time to pick up the phone and call to talk, or even text, but I'm always thinking about them and wishing there weren't so many miles between us.

31. How would you describe your personal fashion concept of 2015?

Cute, but casual. I found some awesome pairs of jeans, thanks to Stitch Fix and opted for stylish tops over t-shirts most days which is a step up from previous years.

32. What kept you sane?

Andi's mom, Janie. She's my local "mom" who listens to my frustrations when I need someone to hear them, and helps me so much with the kids.

33. What political issue stirred you the most?

Hmmmm ... ?

34. Who did you miss?


My family in Nebraska

35. Who was the best new person you met?

My friend, Mirjam. We first met at the playground last spring, and kept running into each other unexpectedly at various parks in town. Finally, we exchanged phone numbers and the rest is history! She and I have become fast friends. Her son Elia has become Aden's little buddy, too. 

36. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2015.

Keep expectations low, and avoid hurt feelings. When I have a set idea in my mind how something will go -- anything from family holidays to routine trips to the grocery store -- and things don't go my way, I feel disappointed. However, by going into something with low expectations, I'm more often surprised and delighted than let down and upset.

37. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.

Life is what happens between coffee and wine.

Christmas 2015

Christmas! It happened ... better get to blogging about it before Easter rolls around.

Andi, Tory, Aden and I spent Christmas at our lake cabin this year, and it was absolutely wonderful. It's something we've wanted to do for years, but weren't sure how to make it work without upsetting family. Bucking tradition can be a tricky thing, and past practice had us alternating visits with my family in Nebraska or celebrating with Andi's family in Minneapolis. Fortunately, everyone was supportive of our decision to try something new this year, and our Christmas celebration turned out to be everything we'd wished it to be. 

Our family of four arrived at the cabin on Wednesday, December 23 and were pleased to find a fresh blanket of snow on the ground! The weather stations were abuzz all week as to whether Minnesota would have a white Christmas, and fortunately the weather changed from rain to snow as we drove over the Wisconsin border. I'd pictured snow-covered trees surrounding us on Christmas Day, and happily it was as beautiful as I'd imagined.

On Christmas Eve (Thursday), Andi and I bundled up the kids and took them for a walk in the woods. Tory was in absolute heaven in the snow, and promptly dropped into snow angel position the first chance she got. Aden, on the other hand, wasn't a big fan of the white stuff. He had a hard time walking in his bulky snow suit and boots, and cried the minute wet snow touched his bare hands (but wouldn't leave his gloves on either).

Later that morning, we FaceTime'd my parents, sister and nieces so they could watch Tory and Aden open the gifts my Nebraska family sent us. I'm sure it felt strange for them to sit on the other side of a computer screen and watch Tory and Aden rip through gift after gift. There was the typical chaos of wrapping paper flying through the air and kiddo screeches as they excitedly unwrapped each box. Still though, I was thankful for the opportunity to share the experience with my family. It made the 10 hours of distance between us feel a little smaller.

Andi's parents joined us at the cabin later that evening to celebrate Christmas Eve, and together we attended church at a little country chapel down the road. Before we left, I carried forward one tradition from my own childhood: Andi and I gave Tory and Aden each one small gift to open before church. When I was a kid, we'd unwrap a piece of jewelry or a watch and it seemed oh, so special! Tory felt the same way as she opened a silver necklace with her initial T on it. She immediately put it on with her Christmas dress. Aden loved his Melissa & Doug Water Wow book to use during the service.

Tory and Aden had a difficult time sitting through the hour-long church service with so many readings, so Janie kindly took them to the children's room next to the sanctuary. Afterwards, the six of us headed back to the cabin for heavy appetizers and night-before-Christmas excitement. Andi helped Tory arrange cookies and carrots on a plate for Santa Claus, and both kids went to bed around 8:30pm. Janie, Jim, Andi and I spent the rest of the evening sharing stories of our favorite Christmas memories as we set out Santa's presents by the tree. It was a perfect evening.

Then, a Christmas miracle! Tory and Aden slept in longer than the adults on Christmas morning. Janie, Jim, Andi and I had breakfast in the oven and cups of coffee in our hands by the time the kids woke up to see what Santa Claus had left them. Tory was super excited to find a princess castle, a carriage and a yoga mat among other smaller things. Aden received a Little People City Skyway, a bike helmet, a frog umbrella and galoshes.

This was the first time (at age 4) Tory really understood the meaning of all the parts of Christmas. She expected presents under the tree on Christmas morning, and excitedly dumped her stocking out onto her new workout mat to see what Santa had left her. Aden (at age 2), on the other hand, wasn't sure what all the hubbub was about. He fixed himself on the biggest present - the racetrack - and ignored the rest. When Tory finally convinced Aden to look in his stocking, he pulled out a new package of pacifiers and exclaimed, "Ooh! Paci's!" Apparently, that was a gift he could get excited about.

 

Trying out the new paint sets Santa Claus left them in their stockings was mandatory, obviously.

Around lunchtime, Andi's sister Lindsay and her husband Kyle arrived at the cabin to spend Christmas with us. I felt so appreciative of Andi's family who agreed to travel to us at the lake so our kids could wake up in their own place on Christmas morning, and not have to rush off somewhere the minute they received their gifts from Santa.

Our intimate group of family enjoyed Christmas Day together without a pressing agenda to keep. We relaxed, ate, talked and took a walk in the woods. Janie arranged a fun, social meal for us - raclette - using a special Swiss pan she'd purchased. Similar to fondue, it involved melting special raclette cheese in trays under the pan and cooking meat and veggies on the top griddle. She served chicken, shrimp, beef, diced vegetables, gherkin pickles called cornichons and boiled potatoes. It was delicious, and so fun to sit around the table together as a family. The whole process took several hours.

After lunch and Aden's afternoon nap, we opened gifts. This year, we decided to dial things back and exchanged names amongst the six adults. Less presents for us meant more of the focus was shifted to the kids. My very favorite present was a pot holder Tory (with Janie's assistance) made me. She was excited to give it me, and I loved seeing how proud she was of her efforts.  

Janie, Jim, Lindsay and Kyle stayed overnight at the cabin Christmas Day, so we capped off the night with board games (first the Dazzling Princess game with Tory, followed by Mexican Train Dominoes after the kids were in bed). How many nights of the year allow the chance to sit around with family and play games together? To me, it's one of the best parts about the holidays. 

We finished our Christmas celebration the morning of Friday, December 26 with crepes made on the same raclette griddle used the day prior. Janie brought the making for sweet crepes with fruit, nutella and whipped cream. 

It was the perfect low-key Christmas celebration -- our first at the lake cabin.